Closing a recently opened account at CU

[Silver12]

Afternoon all,

I relatively recently (about 6 1/2 months ago) opened a savings account with SDFCU with the intent of getting the chip & pin cards they offer as I was going to move overseas for work for a few years - I have NOT gotten any cards through them yet.

Unfortunately, that didn't happen and I'll be staying stateside for the foreseeable future.  SDFCU, other than the chip & pin, is not the most convenient bank for me....I have a NASA FCU branch right next door.  That being said, would there be any adverse impact to my credit score (big 3 or Chex) if I were to close the SDFCU account outright and apply to open one at NASA instead?

I don't have stellar credit by any means (though not horrible - b/w 677-680 credit score for all 3 on MyFico) so I plan on applying for NASA first before closing the SDFCU account.

Just wanted to see if there were any negatives to doing that before I did!

Thanks for any info!!

[Silver12]

Following up on my own question - I have been reading about DCU also, and while there are no branches nearby, any thoughts on if this would be a better option than NASA?

Thanks!

[takeshi74]

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@Silver12 wrote:

That being said, would there be any adverse impact to my credit score (big 3 or Chex) if I were to close the SDFCU account outright and apply to open one at NASA instead?

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No adverse affect from closing a savings account.  I have no idea if NASA performs a hard pull to open an account but that could have an impact.

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@Silver12 wrote:

Following up on my own question - I have been reading about DCU also, and while there are no branches nearby, any thoughts on if this would be a better option than NASA?

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Define better.  What are you specifically looking for from a CU?  Is a local branch a concern or not?  You seem to bring it up and then dismiss it.

[Silver12]

Local branch is a concern, but I'm wondering if the benefits of DCU outweighs it.

Namely, I will DEFINITELY be buying a car in the not-to-distant future, and DCU seems to have better rates.  And I just read about the free EQ score, which will compliment my Barclay's TU score nicely....especially since I am rebuilding and paying attention to score changes.

I guess the question is is it worth it to have the inconvenience of no local branch to potentially benefit with a lower APR (by up to a full percentage point it looks like) by building a relationship with DCU now? 

All of my paychecks are DD, so that part of it isn't an issue.  I just really enjoy the convenience of walking in and talking to someone when applying for loans or when I have an issue.

Thanks for the reply!

[CreditDunce]

Closing SDFCU will not effect your credit score in any way.   However, since the minimum deposit for SDFCU is one $1 in savings, I am not sure what the advantageous of closing it are either.  Of course, simplifing your finances could make it worth it.  You would also need to do something (ACH transfer, etc) every two years to keep the account active.

Personally, I like having a local CU/Bank.  But there is no reason you can't have a local one and join a couple of non-local CU's, too.

If you are looking for the best auto rates, wait until you are ready to buy before joining a CU.  The best rates will depend on your credit score, the term of the loan you are looking for and the rates offered by each CU vary over time.  For example, SDFCU offers a rate of 1.24% up to 36 months for excellent credit right now.  DCU will go down to 1.49% for the best rates but they are more lenient on the credit score and offer longer terms.

Note, if you do decide to join DCU, it will be a EQ HP.   Actually, I took two HP's when I joined and added a checking account.  But I might just be special.  Expect at least one for joining and one for any loan apps.